Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Erin Beacham. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Erin , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about the early days of establishing your own firm. What can you share?
Looking back, I had thoughts of going out on my own for a while. I left my previous job in the fall of 2021 without a job to go to. I was going to focus on my mental health and family for a bit and then make some decisions. For years leading up to this, there were a few people that had been saying “why don’t you start your own firm?” As I had time to unplug and think, I kept hearing their voices and subtle suggestions. I also had a few previous clients that were interested in continuing our relationship, so I started making a list of what I would need to start an equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) consulting firm. Even in the times I thought I had a comprehensive list of needs and wants, there were things that came up that I hadn’t thought of.
The two parts of starting the firm that took the longest and were most challenging were coming up with branding concepts and the content for the website. Knowing the field I work in is always changing and evolving, I wanted something that would still be relevant and inclusive 10 years down the road. I was also beginning with the end in mind, meaning I would love to build a team and have ACTivators across the country! I have pages and pages of brainstorming notes of not only the name, but the core beliefs, values, and mission of the work.
The advice I would give to a young professional is there are going to be ups and downs starting a new firm and just give yourself some grace. I was fortunate to know other people that had started similar consulting firms that I could bounce ideas off of. I really missed being a part of a team when I went out on my own so finding people to meet with and talk to, even if it was a friend for coffee, was really good during the transitional time of trying to build a firm.
Erin , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I grew up in Atlanta, although I spent 15 years in Greensboro, NC. I consider both places to be home. I often say I moved back to Atlanta when I realized my family wasn’t moving up to North Carolina to be with me. My grandparents were both in their 90’s and I wanted to have more time with them and the rest of my family. At the time, I also believed there were more professional opportunities in Atlanta so I moved back.
When talking about my journey I acknowledge my path to this career as the founder of an equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) firm was a little wonky. Over the years, I learned so many valuable lessons at each job. I met incredible people who were mentors and instrumental in guiding and supporting me along the way. I consider my 12th grade English teacher as one of the catalysts for this path. We read only authors that were people of color or had marginalized identities. It was the discussions and reflection from these books that created the spark that started this path. My career has spanned across various industries including coaching college basketball to managing a local café. Throughout the years, although all my jobs didn’t have a focus on EDI, I was volunteering at different non-profit organizations that continued to pave my path forward towards the career I wanted.
In 2014, I accepted a job with a large civil rights organization where I spent 7 years. During my tenure, I was promoted 3 times with my final position being the Director of Education Programs for the Southern Division which covered 9 states. While there, I oversaw all of the education and anti-bias programs, as well as supported some policy work.
In the fall of 2021, I decided to leave my job and start my own Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) consulting firm. I wanted to operate independently under my unique value system and have more flexible time for my family, while also being able to do the work I love. I started ACT (Activate/Challenge/Transform) Consulting LLC which is a firm dedicated to supporting the creation of sustainable, brave spaces where everyone can exist authentically. ACT offers interactive programs ranging from 1-6 hours. These programs are adaptable depending on the needs and goals of each partner. Some of our standard programs include topics of early messages, managing our biases, identity, and ACTion steps to respond to incidents. We also offer consulting and collaboration which are our long-term, strategic partnerships with the goal of creating transformational change.
As ACTivators, we personally connect with our partners in this work. We are unapologetic and authentic in who we are, what we do and why we do this work. That authenticity includes sharing personal stories, times that we have caused harm and how we have used those incidents as moments to learn or unlearn.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
There are many lessons, feelings and habits that I had to unlearn (and am still unlearning), especially during the first year of starting my own business. The first few months were hard and a bit of a roller coaster ride of emotions, filled with self-reflection. The first habit to unlearn was looking at my email right before I went to sleep and first thing in the morning. I wanted to focus on setting boundaries, and one perfect example is that it is okay if I responded a few hours or even a few days later, that I didn’t need to respond immediately. The second lesson was much harder. Being incredibly busy had become engrained in my sense of self-worth. Early on, I had days in which I wasn’t busy or didn’t have something on my calendar, and that had a tendency to make me feel like I wasn’t important or relevant to my work. The reality is that this just isn’t true, and something I am still unlearning.
How’d you meet your business partner?
Perri Chandler and I met through my previous employer. I started as the Education Director and she was a facilitator for the organization’s anti-bias programs. Over the years, we became friends, and an integral part of each other’s professional develop. It was a natural fit to collaborate on building and creating ACT Consulting. I believe the overlap of our personal friendship and professional relationship is of great benefit to our clients and the communities we work in. We are open and honest about our own journeys doing this work, our intersecting identities, sharing times when we have made mistakes and our continued growth as ACTivators. Perri would say this work is “our calling”. It’s not only our profession, but how we both live our lives.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.actconsultinggroup.com
- Instagram: act_consulting_group
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-beacham-70774919/
Image Credits
Taylor Zorzi (black hoodie/ACT shirt photos) Esperanza Sanchez-Apodaca (green sweater photo)